Coin holding and delivering device.



N0. $4 4,282, PATENTED FEB. 12, 1907.

J. W. MEAKER.

COIN HOLDING AND DELIVERING DEVICE.

APPLIUATION FILED JAN. 19, 1906.

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No. 844,282. PATBNTED FEB. 12, 1907. J. w. MEAKER.

COIN HOLDING AND DELIVERING DEVICE.

' APPLIOATIQN FILED JAN.19, 1906.

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THE NORRIS PETERS ca., WASHINGTON. u. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE.

JOHN W. MEAKER, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO MEAKER SCALES COIN HOLDING AND DELIVERING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 12, 1907.

Application filed January 19, 1906. Serial No. 296,757.

To a/ZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN W. MEAKER, a citizen of theUnited States, residing at De troit, in the county of I/Vayne and State of Michigan, have invented new and useful Improvements in Coin Holding and Delivering Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates toa coin holding and delivering device embodying a receptacle for a stack or column of coins and means for delivering one or more coins therefrom into the hand of the operator used in operating the delivering mechanism.

The main feature of the invention concerns the means for delivering the coins and also the general and particular construction of its parts.

The object of the invention is to facilitate the handling of the larger coins of metal cur rency in making change or in paying out such coins, although the invention is not restricted to large coins alone.

The invention consists in the matters pointed out in the several claims appended to the following description of the particular form of the invention selected for illustration thereof in the accompanying drawings.

Referring to said drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of a device embodying my inven tion. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of the same, taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 4. Fig. 3 is a view corresponding to Fig. 2, but showing the several parts of the mechanism as they appear when the com-receptacle has been moved forward for delivering a coin; and Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 2.

A indicates a coin-receptacle, preferably in the form of a tube, as shown. It is pivotally mounted at its upper end on a transverse horizontal stud or snaft a and has portions of its walls removed, as at a a, to permit the insertion of coins and also to permit the contents of the receptacle to be plainly seen.

O indicates a stop or support against which the lower end of the receptacle normally rests at such an angle as will permit the stack or column of coins to descend therein by gravity when the lowermost coin or coins are removed and as also to insurea prompt gravity return movement of the receptacle after the latter has been moved forward in discharging a coin.

The stop O is preferably in the form of a plate provided with a Ushaped recess 0, in which the receptacle normally rests. Said plate C may be sustained in any suitable manner, it being deemed sufficient for present purposes to state that the receptacle only is movable, its movement being upon its pivotal support a and within fixed limits, as will be hereinafter explained.

The stack or pile of coins B is upheld in the receptacle when at rest by projections c c, proceeding forwardly from the plate O and extending into the receptacle through slots 0 0 formed in the rear wall thereof. Said projections c are of such length as to afford a support for the rear margin only of the lowermost coin, the front margin of this coin being supported upon a lug or lip 0 projecting inwardly from the front wall of the receptacle.

The parts are so organized and arranged that the operator by placing his upwardlyopen hand beneath the receptacle and bending his fingers forwardly may swing the receptacle forward, so as to carry the lowermost coin beyond the supports 0 c, the coins being thus permitted to drop toward the operators hand; but in order that only a single or other predetermined number of coins may be thus discharged at each operation I provide means for bringing into action at said operation a support for the coin which is next above the coin or coins to be discharged, as will be presently explained. The apparatus, as here illustrated, is arranged to discharge only a single coin at each operation, and accordingly the coin which is next above the lowermost coin is the coin which is in this case engaged and held by the supporting means last above referred to. Describing this secondary support, as here illustrated. the rear wall of the receptacle is provided with a slot e in line with the coin 6 (here next to the bottom coin) and of sufficient dimensions to receive the latter, so that the receptacle may be moved while said coin is held stationary. The coin b has its rear edge resting against a projection f on a block F, which is mounted on the plate O at the rear of the receptacle, said projection f occupying a portion of said slot when the receptacle is at rest against O, so that the coin b will be free to drop to the support 0 c after the lowermost coin b has been discharged from the receptacle and the latter has returned to its normal position. On the stationary plate C in front of the receptacle and extending across the U-shaped recess therein is secured a thin metal bar or plate Gr, having a beveled inner edge g, which is in line with the coin W. This bar serves as a stop for preventing said coin from being moved forward with the column of coins when the latter is carried forward and causes said coin to pass into the rear slot 6 of the receptacle. This stop G also here serves to limit the forward movementof the receptacle, the Walls of the latter striking the stop G at the points marked g g in Fig. 4, the bar G shown being cut out at these points in order that the receptacle may have a movement sufficient to release the column of coins from the support 0 c.

The operation of the apparatus is therefore as follows: The receptacle being supplied with a column of coins B, the operator to obtain a coin places-his upwardly-open hand beneath the'receptacle and by means of his fingers draws it forward from its normal position (illustrated in Fig. 2) to the limit of its forward movement. (Illustrated in Fig. 3.) All of the coins except the coin b will becarried forward with the receptacle, and the lowermost coin I) being thus released relatively from the support a 0 will drop into the operators hand. The remaining coins will be upheld in the receptacle by the coin 6 which has been held against movement by the stop G and, as shown in Fig. 3, now occupies the slot e in the rear wall of the receptacle, where it serves as a support for the column of coins above it, while stop G serves as a front support for the column. When the receptacle is released by the operator, it immediately returns by gravity to its initial or normal position. The coin I) being then wholly within the receptacle, the entire column of coins drops down and rests upon the rear support 0 c and front lip 0 the lowermost coin being then in position to be discharged by the next operation of the device. By arranging the rear slot e and front stationary stop-bar G in line with a higher coin in the column a correspondingly-larger number of coins may be discharged at one operation.

As hereinbefore indicated, my invention is especially applicable to apparatus desi ned for handling the larger coins, and it wil be readily seen that the ease with which it may be operated will depend somewhat on the number and weight of the coins carried b the stop-coin, (6 as here shown,) which is held stationary. If, for instance, a large number of silver dollars be suspended upon the stop-coin, it will require greater power to move the receptacle than if only a few coins rest thereon. In the handling of small coins the variation in the operation of the devlce due to the variations in the number of coins tively slight andunobjectionable; but where coins as large as silver dollars are being handled it is desirable that the. operation of the device be made as easy and as uniform as possible regardless of the number of coins carried in the receptacle. To accomplish this result, I have provided the receptacle with a second coin supporting and releasing mechanism located above that at thelower end of the receptacle, said higher mechanism being adapted to support a separate column of coins B, from which the column of coins B at the lower end of the receptacle is automatically supplied with coins to take the place of those discharged into the hand of the operator. The upper or supply column of coins B being supported nearer to the pivotal support of the receptacle than the column B at the lower end thereof renders the receptacle more easily movable than if all of the coins were carried in a single column B upon the coin-support at the lower end thereof. The upper or supply column of coins B .is supported upon a coin-su port 0 formed inte gral with a plate 0, which is an exact counterpart of the plate 0 before described, both of the plates 0 and C being integrally connected to a plate 0 at the back of the receptacle and also connected together by rods 0 c at each side of the receptacle in order to form a single rigid structure or frame. A front stop G and rear slot 6 are provided for holding the stop-coin, together with a block F, having a projection f against which the upper stop-coin rests, all these parts or devices beingduplications of the corresponding coin supporting and releasing devices at the lower end of the receptacle, except that they are proportioned to the shorter throw of the receptacle. When, therefore, the device is operated for discharging a given number of coins from the bottom of the receptacle, a corresponding number of coins will drop from the column of coins B onto the delivered into the hand of the operator. The number of coins in the lower column of coins B is thus always kept constant so long as there are coins in the upper or supply column B, to which additional coins may be added from time to time as occasion may require. The number of coins in the upper column B may vary considerably without any very great variation in the action or operation of the device. The constant number of coins at the lower end of the receptacle produces practically uniformity in action, and the main body of coins being carried in the upper column B the power necessary to operate the device is materially reduced.

The device illustrated in the drawings may be made an attachment to a money-changing machinesuch, for instance, as that illustrated in Patent No. 790,218, granted to me carried in the coin-receptacle is comparal Mayl5, 1905.

Change-making machines designed for United States coins are usually provided with a receptacle and. delivery mechanism for silver dollars in addition to the receptacles and delivery mechanisms provided for each of the smaller coins, the provision made for silver dollars being necessary in order to adapt the machine to the demands of localities where silver dollars are in general use. In other localities where comparatively few silver dollars are circulated bankers and others prefer that the machine be made smaller and lighter by the omission of the silver-dollar receptacle and delivery mechanism. In order to save expense of dies and patterns for two machines for these different localities, I make a machine H, in which no provision is made for silver dollars, and provide a separate receptacle and delivery mechanism in the form illustrated in the drawings, which receptacle and mechanism constitute an attachment to be applied to the side plate h of the change-making machine, as illustrated in Fig. 1, in order to adapt the machine to the demands of localities or persons requiring it. The machine H is the same general type of machine as is illustrated in the patent hereinbefore referred to, the receptacle A being supported on the side plate h thereof in line with the other coinreceptacle by means of the shaft or stud a, which is riveted or otherwise secured to a standard h 01' said side plate, and by the support for the lower end of the receptacle, which has been hereinbei'ore described, said support being secured to said side plate by means of pins or studs i 71, secured to the plate C and riveted or otherwise fastened to said s1de plate 72, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 1.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A receptacle for a column of coins sup ported so as to be bodily movable within limits, combined with a stationary support upon which the lowermost coin of the column of coins normally rests, said receptacle being movable away from said support for releasing the coins, and means for sustaining one of the intermediate coins when the column of coins is moved with the receptacle away from said stationary support, whereby discharge of the coin or coins below said intermediate coin is efiected.

2. A receptacle for a column of coins supported so as to be bodily movable within limits, combined with means adapted to uphold a column of coins therein when the receptacle isat one limit of movement and to release the coins when the receptacle is at the other limit of its movement, and means for sustaining one of the intermediate coins when the column is moved with the receptacle, whereby discharge of the coin or coins below such intermediate coin is efiected.

3. A pivotally-mounted receptacle for a column of coins, combined with a stationary support adapted to uphold a column of coins therein when the receptacle is in its normal position, said receptacle being movable on its pivotal support for carrying the coins away from said support, and means for holding one of the intermediate coins stationary when the column is moved with. the receptacle, whereby discharge of the coin or coins below such stationary-held coin is effected.

4. A receptacle for a column of coins pivotally mounted at its upper end, a stop or support against which the lower end of the receptacle normally rests, a stationary coinsupport upon which the lowermost coin of the column of coins normally rests, said receptacle being movable on its pivot for carrying the coins away from said coin-support, and means for holding one of the intermediate coins stationary when the receptacle is moved.

5. A receptacle for a column of coins, said receptacle being pivotally mounted at its upper end, a support against which the lower end of the receptacle normally rests, said receptacle being normally held thereby in an inclined position but movable away from said support, a stationary coin-support adapted to uphold the column of coins in the receptacle when the latter is in its normal position, and to release the coins when the receptacle is moved on its pivot, and means for holding one of the intermediate coins against movement when the receptacle is moved.

6. A receptacle for a column of coins, so supported as to be bodily movable within limits, combined with a stationary coin-sup port, said coin-support projecting into the receptacle through the wall thereof when the receptacle is at one limit of movement, and being relatively retracted when the receptacle is at the other limit of its movement, and means for supporting one of the intermediate coins when the receptacle is moved for rela tively retracting said coin-support.

7. A receptacle for a column of coins, said receptacle being pivotally mounted at its upper end, a stop or support against which the lower end of the receptacle normallyrests, the latter being normally held thereby in an inclined position but being movable away from said support, a stationary support for upholding a column of coins in the receptacle, said coin-support projecting into the receptacle through the wall thereof when the receptacle is in its normal position, but which is relatively retracted when the receptacle is moved from its normal position, a stop adapted to engage one of the intermediate coins and hold it against movement, the wall of the receptacle being provided with a slot opposite said stop to accommodate said coin, and means for partially closing said slot when the receptacle is in its normal position.

8. A coin-receptacle provided with means for supporting a column of coins therein,

multaneously with the operation of said ooindischarging means.

9. A coin-receptacle so mounted as to be bodily movable within limits of two stationary coin-supports one located above the other, each of said supports being adapted to uphold a column of coins in the receptacle when the latter is at one limit of its movement and to release the coins when the receptacle is at the other limit of its movement, and means for holding one of the intermediate coins of both columns of coins stationary when said columns of coins are moved with the receptacle.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing wit- JOHN W. MEAKER.

Witnesses:

WM. A. SANDS, JNo. J. THEISEN.

Correction in Letters Patent No. 844,282.

It is hereby certified that the name of the assignee in Letters Patent N 0. 844,282,. granted February 12, 1907, upon the application of John W. Meaker, of Detroit, Michigan, for an improvement in Coin Holding and Delivering Devices, was errroneously Written and printed Meaker Scales Company, whereas said name should have been written and printed Meaker Sales Company; and, that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oifice.

Signed and sealed this 26th day of February, A. D., 1907.

[SEAL] E. B. MOORE, Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

